Golden Smiles
by okmangeez
Summary: Minato's final wishes are granted and Naruto is hailed as a hero for becoming the Jinchuriki of the Nine-Tails. When Naruto is greeted by the villagers with smiles instead of frowns, the whole world is turned upside down. The changes shift Naruto's life radically and motivate the blond to become the greatest shinobi in Konoha's history. All in order to protect the people's smiles.
1. Chapter 1

Naruto didn't know why people always smiled when they saw him on the streets of Konoha.

Oh, he didn't _dislike_ the fact that people smiled at him. After all, he liked seeing people smile. Before he ventured outside the orphanage to attend the Konoha Shinobi Academy, he only saw the cheerful smiles of kids during playtime and the occasional kind smiles of the Konoha Orphanage staff.

But most of the time, they were never directed towards him.

However, the moment he stepped out into the real world, the world outside the orphanage, he was greeted with waves of smiles directed towards _him_. Him _specifically_. And people didn't just smile at him either. People stopped to point at him or to wave at him as if he was famous. In the long thirty minute walk to the Konoha Shinobi Academy, Naruto recalled seeing hundreds of different smiling faces, faces that smiled once they saw his face and hair. He couldn't see his own face, but he knew _he_ was smiling too. The smiles of civilians were infectious and being greeted so warmly by strangers made him grin ear to ear.

By the time he reached the gates of the Academy, a huge smile adorned his face and his face was glowing with positivity.

Maybe the civilians knew he was going to start training to be a ninja today. Or maybe they were just friendly. But regardless, he knew he was going to work hard in the Academy, make new friends, and become the great shinobi in the whole world.

Because while he didn't remember the exact details of every smiling face he saw, Naruto wanted to protect those smiling faces. The smiling faces encouraged him, motivated him to defend the village he called home. He didn't know _why_ they smiled at him, but the fact that they were smiling at him made him feel warm inside. The feeling urged him to protect those smiles and to make sure that all the villagers could smile even without him one day.

And seeing so many smiling faces, he wanted to make friends so that he could also make them smile.

When he walked through the entrance of his school, the blond did not know about the future that awaited him at that time. But thanks to the smiles of the villagers, the future was a bright one.

* * *

Sarutobi Hiruzen never truly believed that he was a worthy successor to his mentor, the Second Hokage. He knew he was a perfectly capable Hokage, and possibly even a great one. But he wasn't infallible. As a matter of fact, he believed that he was _too_ fallible at times. He made many mistakes during his reign as the Hokage, some of them that still haunted to this day. And today, a byproduct of one of his many mistakes was beginning his first day at the Shinobi Academy.

Sure, the Third Hokage wasn't entirely to blame for his own successor's death. Even so, the death of one Namikaze Minato weighed heavily on Hiruzen's heart. After all, _he_ was the one that appointed Minato as the Fourth Hokage. _He_ was the one that stood on the sidelines as the father of Naruto sacrificed himself for the village. And _he_ was the one that left the boy to grow up by himself as an orphan.

Watching the blond with his Telescope Technique made Hiruzen let out a deep sigh of regret. He smoked his pipe silently as he watched the eager, bright boy make his way through the hallways of the Academy and into his classroom. Seeing Naruto's bright smile, despite his upbringing, made the Third Hokage's heart sink further. The man could almost imagine the boy's parents guiding him to his classroom with happy smiles on their faces, with Minato encouraging his son and Kushina hugging the boy as he began his career as a shinobi. It was a life that could have been.

The only consolation Hiruzen had was that he managed to convince the village that the boy _wasn'__t_ a demon. It took many rounds of speeches and pleas on his part. He personally went in front of the people of Konoha to declare that Naruto, despite his unawareness and youth, was personally given the role to guard the Kyuubi by the Fourth Hokage himself. He repeatedly stressed that the Kyuubi was trapped inside Naruto, but unable to influence or shape the boy's thoughts. The Third Hokage also made sure to mention that Naruto was also made an orphan due to the Kyuubi and despite this, sacrificed himself in order to ensure that no other children became an orphan again.

It was difficult, and he had to constantly remind the people and even his own council members again and again about Naruto and his sacrifice. But after years of work, his efforts were finally yielding fruits. There were some people wary of the container of the Nine-Tails even now, but that group was slowly shrinking. Instead, most of the villagers accepted his words and saw the boy in a different light. And the changes finally turned into the results he was hoping for: hope and friendliness to a boy that needed it.

Seeing the villagers, _his_ people, taking his words to heart and smiling at the boy moved him. It didn't make up for all the wrongs he had committed, but it was certainly a start and a bright start for Naruto. As he watched Naruto introduced himself, the Third Hokage chuckled and saw that many of the kids were laughing and smiling. It seemed as though that while Naruto had picked up on Minato's looks, his sense of humor was definitely from Kushina.

Hiruzen pulled out a notepad from his desk and jotted down some notes about Naruto based on what he saw. Below those notes, he wrote down suggestions on how to train the blond and potential tutors to look after the boy. Inhaling his pipe deeply, he nodded in approval at the list he had created. He would've been glad to take up the mantle of Naruto's mentor, but regrettably, he was far too busy and was still hesitant to the idea of meeting Naruto. Over the course of the next several weeks, the Third Hokage was going to observe the Uzumaki and pair him with an appropriate tutor to help push him to new heights.

Hiruzen had made the first step in redeeming himself by raising Naruto's status in Konoha. He wasn't going to turn his back now; especially not to the son of his successor, the man he owed much to.

* * *

"My name is Uzumaki Naruto and I'm seven years old! I like playing with my friends, ramen, and making people laugh!" Naruto puffed out his chest confidently in front of the class, "One day, I'm going to be the Hokage and make sure that everyone gets an extra hour for lunchtime!"

The kids all laughed and cheered at his remark, and Naruto beamed brightly at their smiles. His chunin instructor, a gentle-looking chunin named Iruka, smiled at him warmly and playfully shooed him to his seat, "Alright, Mr. _Future Hokage_, time to take your seat with the others."

Iruka's tone made it clear that the tanned man wasn't mocking Naruto but teasing him. While Naruto thought that being the Hokage meant being the strongest in the village, and rightfully so, Iruka was aware that there were many obstacles facing Naruto's way towards that goal. But seeing the boy's bright attitude and ability to stir up the students made him believe that the boy had the potential to be a great leader.

Naruto pouted, which drew a round of giggles and snorts from the students, and took his seat. His seat was next to a smiling boy with black hair and onyx eyes. Eager to make his first friend at the Academy, Naruto stuck out his hand and grinned at the boy, "Hi! I'm Naruto, future Hokage! What's your name?"

The boy returned his grin and shook his hand vigorously, "I'm Sasuke, Uchiha Sasuke! Hokage, huh? That's a pretty ambitious goal!"

"Yep!" Naruto chirped, "One day, I'm going to be the strongest shinobi in the Leaf and since the Hokage is the strongest shinobi, my goal is to become Hokage!"

"Cool! I wish my goal was as awesome as yours, but I just want to be better than my ni-chan."

"Ni-chan?" Naruto tilted his head.

Sasuke turned a bit red but nodded his head, "My older brother, Itachi. He's really talented and smart. People say he's one of the best shinobi the Uchiha clan has ever seen and I want to prove that I'm better than him."

The Uzumaki could relate to his feelings to an extent. While growing up in the orphanage, Naruto always lagged behind the other children when it came to learning, especially reading. He didn't _hate_ reading, but he wasn't good at it. The orphanage staff constantly encouraged and praised him, but he knew he was a bit slow compared to the others. He was never isolated or ostracized for falling behind, but he understood the feeling of feeling inferior and desire to prove that he was better than the others, "Well since we both want to be great shinobi, do you want to become great shinobi together?"

"I would like that!" Sasuke nodded, "Friends?"

"Friends!" Naruto echoed.

Just then, someone loudly cleared their throat in front of them and the two children saw that their instructor was looking their way, "It's great that you two are friends now, but class time has started. If both of you want to become great shinobi one day, the most important step is to pay attention in class and learning everything you can. After all, you can't become a shinobi if you don't study hard."

Both Naruto and Sasuke turned red from embarrassment, but quieted down and paid attention to their chunin instructor's lesson. Occasionally, they stared at each other and gave each other knowing grins.

* * *

Naruto thought the Academy lessons were a bit confusing but paid attention during class regardless. He knew it was important to focus when his teacher was speaking and knew he needed to study hard. After all, he wanted to become the strongest shinobi but didn't know _anything_ about being a shinobi. Even though it was only his first day of class, Naruto asked a lot of questions and requested for the chunin to repeat himself a few times until he finally understood it. To his surprise, Iruka was never angry when he raised his hands and did his best to answer all of the blond's questions. Thanks to his teacher's efforts, Naruto knew the basic duties of a shinobi and the history of Konoha's founding. When class ended, Naruto still had a lot of questions, but he felt confident about raising his hands and asking the chunin about anything he was confused about.

As the students left the classroom to return home, Naruto approached Iruka and bowed clumsily, "Thank you, Iruka-sensei!"

Iruka looked surprised but smiled kindly, "No problem, Naruto. You are my student, after all."

"But you helped me a lot today, and I'm definitely going to repay that favor one day!" Naruto declared.

The chunin instructor laughed as he patted the boy's head, "I look forward to it then. Did you find everything ok? Are you still confused about any of the lessons we learned today?"

Naruto frowned a little, but shook his head, "I think I understood everything, Iruka-sensei. But can I ask you something?"

"Sure, Naruto. What do you want to ask?"

The blond hesitated for a moment before speaking up, "I noticed that everyone in Konoha was smiling at me while I was walking to the Academy. I don't know if that was normal, but I saw people pointing and waving at me too! Do you know why they smiled at me sensei?"

Before Iruka spoke up, Naruto waved his hands frantically, "I mean, I don't dislike it! I like it when I see people smiling! But I just want to know _why_ they were smiling at me. Am I famous, or are the villagers always that happy?"

Crouching in front of him, the tanned man placed his right hand firmly on Naruto's shoulder, "Naruto..."

He forgot about it until now, but Iruka remembered that despite the boy's cheerful attitude, he was still an orphan. It was a little awkward since he knew the boy was the vessel of his parents' killer. However, he knew that the boy suffered just as much as he did, as Naruto also lost his parents in the Nine-Tails Attack and was forced to become the container for the Nine-Tails. Under the cheerful and confident attitude of the blond, the chunin saw spots of uncertainty and hesitation.

Just like Iruka himself, after he lost his own parents.

Phrasing his next words carefully, the Academy teacher gently patted his shoulders, "You _are_ famous because you are a _hero_, Naruto."

"I'm a hero?" Naruto asked puzzledly.

Iruka let out a small laugh as he looked the boy in the eyes, "Yes. I can't tell you the reason why, because it's a village secret. A _very_ important secret. But the villagers smiled at you because they see you as a hero, Naruto. You made a great sacrifice to save our village, and the people remember that."

"But I don't feel like a hero, sensei. I'm just a kid, and not even a shinobi!"

"Anyone can be a hero. You don't need to be as old or as great as the Hokage to become a hero. To the village, _you_ are their hero because you made a sacrifice that no one else dared to make as a baby."

Naruto slowly nodded his head, "I think I get it... So does that mean I have to work harder than before if people think I'm a hero?"

Iruka returned the nod, "Sure, but remember to make your own path. You don't always need to be what the villagers want you to be. You said you wanted to be Hokage, right?"

Seeing the boy eagerly nodding, the scarred man smiled, "Then don't let anyone talk you out of that goal. It's important to remember that while you are a hero, you shouldn't rely on what you did as a baby forever. You might not remember what you did to be considered a hero to the villagers, but you _can_ work hard to become a hero for them from now on while pursuing your goal. And one day, when you're the Hokage, you can help the villagers smile even more and be a hero for things that you remember doing."

"I think I'll like that," Naruto said thoughtfully.

"Remember, what anyone says, I was the first one to support you to become Hokage," Iruka said jokingly.

The blond hugged the man tightly, "Thank you, sensei! I promise I'll always come to your class on time and study hard!"

Chuckling softly, the chunin placed his arms around the boy and smiled.

* * *

A month passed since Naruto's first day at the Academy. During that time, Naruto made a lot of new friends and learned a variety of new things from his chunin instructor. His new friends didn't see him as a hero as the older villagers did, but they were friendly and nice to him. He considered Sasuke as his first and closest friend, but all his new friends were interesting and fun to hang out with.

Shikamaru was lazy and laid-back, but seriously smart too. Naruto often invited the Nara to sit next to him so that he could ask him questions about things he didn't understand. During lunchtime, Naruto spent his time eating at his desk with Sasuke and Shikamaru while reading and studying fervently. Surprisingly, Shikamaru was receptive to his questions and only closed his eyes to nap after he answered Naruto's questions.

Choji was chubby and big, but he was also caring and thoughtful. The boy offered Naruto snacks whenever he looked hungry after the Academy ended, as the blond's appetite was huge. He also shared his class notes with Naruto and sat next to him and Sasuke during class. While Choji wasn't as smart as Shikamaru, he was diligent and worked just as hard as Naruto.

Shino was quiet and awkward but intelligent in his own ways. He was one of the few kids in the class that had experience using jutsu and chakra, as he communicated with the bugs that were nested in his body daily. Naruto thought his bugs were _wicked_ and talked to Shino whenever he could. Shino usually answered with one or two-word answers, but that never deterred the blond from speaking with him.

Kiba was annoying and loud, but Naruto thought the boy was funny at times. He was awfully cocky, but Naruto managed to see through his bombastic attitude and saw a loyal friend underneath. The two of them had competitions daily to see who was "better," but it was usually in good spirits. They were also facing each other in a small prank war, and often made the class laugh with their harmless, yet amusing pranks. In just a week, Naruto had pranked the Inuzuka by placing a classic whoopee cushion on his chair and drawing on his dog's face when the two of them fell asleep in class.

There were many other people he met and he worked hard to remember their faces and names whenever he could. After all, if he was going to be Hokage one day, it was good to know the names of all the people in the village.

Usually, Naruto was always laughing and smiling with his friends, but when Iruka was lecturing the class, he turned solemn and hardly joked around with his friends. He was very serious about becoming a great shinobi and memorized what his instructor taught religiously. From chakra theory to shinobi history, he absorbed any useful information that would help him on his path to becoming Hokage. When he returned to the orphanage, the young Uzumaki reviewed what he had learned on his own and studied ahead of the class' curriculum.

All in all, his life was good and he felt like he was becoming closer to his goal already.

After the end of a typical school day, Naruto packed up his stuff and prepared himself to leave when he was stopped by Sasuke, "Hey Naruto, want to come over to my house and practice some cool jutsu with me?"

Naruto was intrigued, as the class hadn't practiced any real jutsu as of yet. He and his classmates were still learning the basics and weren't expected to learn any jutsu until their third year at the Academy. The prospect of learning flashy jutsu and taking one step closer to becoming a "real" shinobi excited him. The Uzumaki nodded his head excitedly, "Sure! Lead the way!"

The two walked side by side all the way to the Uchiha District, which was in the very northernmost part of Konoha. As they walked down the streets of Konoha, Naruto waved at everyone he saw with a smile and called out the names of the people he knew.

"Hi, Taketa-san! I like the shirt you're wearing today! It's really nice!"

"Nakano oba-san! Do you need help with those groceries?"

"Thanks for giving me some free dango yesterday, Makeda-san, I'll make sure to pay you back one day!"

Sasuke looked at him incredulously as he saw the boy call out more than a dozen individuals on the street, "How do you know all of them?"

The Uzumaki shrugged, "Every time I walk back to the orphanage from the Academy, I always greet the people that wave at me and try to learn their names. Some of them are really nice and give me snacks or stationery for school."

"Must be nice having everyone acknowledging you," Sasuke said glumly.

Naruto saw the dark expression on his friend's face and lightly slapped his back, "Come on Sasuke, don't be like that! You're my best friend and I think you're going to be one of the greatest shinobi ever! I'm sure people will acknowledge your awesomeness one day too!"

Even though he still looked a bit down, the Uchiha grinned at his friend's remarks, "Alright! Then let's get going!"

When they arrived at the Uchiha District, the two boys were greeted by the sight of a large gate with imposing walls that isolated the district from the rest of Konoha. The gates, which served as the entrance of the district, were open, but there were several shinobi from the Uchiha clan that guarded the entrance. Naruto felt nervous as he stepped towards the gate and remained behind his friend.

"Welcome back Sasuke," One of the guards said with a smile that didn't reach his eyes, "How was the Academy?"

"Good, we learned some interesting stuff today," Sasuke replied, "Is ni-san back yet?"

The guard shook his head, "He left earlier this morning on a mission. I have no idea when he'll be back."

The young Uchiha frowned and crossed his arms, "He said he wasn't going on any missions for a few days!"

"He's been busy lately, Sasuke. There has been a lot going on around the village and since he's an experienced chunin, it's not a surprise that he's being assigned more missions."

"But still..."

"Sasuke, are you bothering Kouumoto again?"

A loud, firm voice thundered behind the guards and the guards immediately turned to give a short bow to the source of the voice. The voice belonged to a tall, imposing man with broad shoulders and a square jaw. Naruto could see the resemblance between Sasuke and the man, but the man's eyes were much colder than Sasuke's eyes. He glanced over Sasuke and stared at the blond, who hid behind his friend to avoid the man's imposing stare, "And who is this, Sasuke?"

Sasuke stepped aside to reveal Naruto's hiding figure and smiled weakly, "This is my friend, Naruto! He was the friend I was talking about! You said he was allowed to train with us for today otousan."

The man, who was obviously Sasuke's father, maintained his gaze towards Naruto and finally nodded after several seconds, "So I have. Stop bothering Kouumoto so we can start your training."

"Ok!"

Naruto felt paralyzed by the man's glare, but his feet started moving on his own as Sasuke dragged him into the Uchiha District, "Come on Naruto!"

As they walked towards Sasuke's house, Naruto leaned in and whispered, "I think your otousan is really scary."

The Uchiha laughed out loud, earning him a harsh glare from his father. After he quieted down, the raven-haired boy answered his friend's comment, "He can be scary at times, but he's a great dad. I mean, he offered to teach me today and approved of you coming here."

That made the blond feel a little better, but he was still a bit intimidated by the man's presence.

They reached their destination within a few minutes: a large house with a spacious courtyard and backyard. The group walked through the house and entered the backyard, which contained a training area, a sizeable pond, and several trees.

Sasuke's father looked around the training area before stopping the two boys, "For today, I will teach you the basics of chakra control and the _Kawarimi no Jutsu_ (Body Replacement Technique)."

"But that jutsu is so lame, otousan! I want to learn something cool, like the Fireball Jutsu!" Sasuke complained.

The Uchiha head turned his head sharply and stared Sasuke into submission, "The jutsu is not "lame." It is a useful jutsu that can save your life one day. And I never specified _which_ jutsu I would be teaching you today. So stay silent and watch carefully."

He looked at Naruto and gave him a stern nod. Naruto gulped and nodded his head rapidly.

"In order to learn how to use jutsu, you must learn how to control your chakra. The first step is to rotate a single leaf on top of your forehead and be able to rotate the leaf in any direction and any speed at will. Like this." The man demonstrated by placing a single leaf on top of his forehead and rotating it freely. He rotated it clockwise, counterclockwise, and at a wide variety of speeds, "Only after you demonstrate that you can rotate the leaf slowly in a clockwise direction, will we move onto the _Kawarimi._"

"This is going to be easy!" Sasuke said as he grabbed a leaf from a nearby tree and placed it on his forehead. Naruto also plucked a leaf from the same tree and placed it slowly on his forehead.

After thirty minutes of futile effort, the boys discovered that the exercise was much harder than they had anticipated. Sasuke was clearly ahead of Naruto, but not by much. That was because while Sasuke's leaf was barely moving in a clockwise direction, Naruto's leaf spun around rapidly and flew off the blond's forehead whenever he concentrated for longer than five seconds. Their "teacher" watched intently in the background and frowned at their progress.

"Come on, Sasuke! Your brother mastered the jutsu in just an hour, yet you haven't even reached the first stage!"

Sasuke looked murderous when he heard his father compare him to his brother, but remained silent and gritted his teeth in order to focus on the jutsu. Naruto lightly jabbed him in the shoulder and smiled at the frustrated Uchiha when the boy turned to look at him. Sasuke calmed down a bit afterward but looked visibly frustrated as his progress with the leaf stalled. Naruto fared a _bit_ better than before but was still unable to control the speed of the leaf's rotation. By the time the sun fell, Sasuke managed to complete the first task while the blond barely managed to slow down his leaf's rotation.

"It seems as though we have run out of time for the day," Sasuke's father frowned at both of them, "You two have made decent progress, but I expect both of you to improve faster. This exercise is a simple one and if you can not complete this within a week, then do not expect to become a shinobi."

And with that, the Uchiha head turned around and stepped back into the house.

After throwing his leaf onto the ground, Sasuke stomped on it forcefully. Naruto ran over to his friend to calm him down, "Sasuke, you need to calm down..."

"He _always_ does this," The raven-haired boy fumed, "It's always _Itachi_ this or _Itachi_ that. No matter what I do, he always finds a reason to mention Itachi's name _and I hate it_!"

Naruto shook the boy and made him look towards him, "Don't listen to him! Itachi is Itachi and you are _you_. Just keep going at your own pace and ignore them! _Don't let your dad or anyone else decide who you want to be_."

Sasuke stared at his friend, "Who I want to be?"

"You said you want to be better than your brother, so ignore what anyone else says and keep working hard to achieve that goal! The more you listen to them and the angrier you get, the more you lose sight of your real goal!"

The Uchiha relaxed and halted his outburst, "You're right. I should be working hard to prove that I can be better than my ni-san, instead of throwing a tantrum."

"That's the spirit!" Naruto cried, "Now let's keep on practicing so we can both become great shinobi together!"

"Together," Sasuke echoed with a smile.

* * *

Naruto returned to the orphanage after several more hours of practice. After working tirelessly on the exercise, he finally managed to complete the first stage. Sasuke managed to go further and was able to change the direction of the leaf's rotation at will. By the time he returned to the place he called home, Naruto was worn out and tired.

Before he stepped through the entrance of the orphanage, he heard a voice call out to him from nearby, "Naruto."

When the blond turned, he came face to face with an old man with a long beard and robes. The man wore a familiar-looking hat and smoked a long pipe.

Realizing who the man was, Naruto immediately bowed deeply, "Hokage-sama!"

"Please, Naruto. Call me _ojichan_," The Third Hokage chuckled, "You don't need to be so stiff with me. I knew your parents, after all."

The Uzumaki's mouth gaped like a fish as he stood in the presence of the God of Shinobi. When he attempted to speak, not a single sound came out of his throat.

Sarutobi inspected the boy up close and smiled, "You have grown much, Naruto. The last time I saw you, you were just a baby."

Naruto finally managed to clear his throat and speak, "If you knew my parents and knew me from a young age, why did you never come to visit me, Hoka...ojichan?"

The Hokage's face suddenly fell and he sat down on a nearby tree trunk to gain his composure, "I...I am truly sorry for never visiting you, Naruto. Forgive this old man for neglecting you until now, but I was still coming to terms with the death of your parents. You see, their deaths were my fault."

Seeing the boy was remaining silent, the Third Hokage continued, "Shortly after you were born, a terrible beast called the Nine-Tails rampaged throughout Konoha. It killed thousands of shinobi and civilians alike. Many shinobi died defending the village from the beast, and both of your parents decided to help the other shinobi protect Konoha. I was good friends with both of your parents and I should have stopped them at that time. You were merely a newborn and I was foolish on letting them leave you alone. And in the end, you became an orphan..."

Silence reigned between the two of them as Sarutobi glanced at the night sky, "After their deaths, I was unable to take care of you because I was reinstated as the Hokage and was tasked with rebuilding the village. But even after the village stabilized, I was hesitant to appear before you because I feared your reaction to my story."

"It's not your fault, ojichan."

Naruto strutted up to the old man and gave him a reassuring hug, "Did my parents love me?"

"They loved you dearly, Naruto. They fought the Nine-Tails in order to protect you from being killed."

"Then I understand," Naruto said, looking at the ground with a sad smile, "I do miss them, but they died trying to protect me and the village. And thanks to them, I'm still alive and the people of the village are smiling. I just wish they were remembered as heroes instead of me because I don't even remember what I did to become a hero."

Sarutobi looked at the boy sorrowfully. He vowed to reveal all the hidden secrets to the boy after he became an official shinobi but now was not the time, "They are, Naruto. All those that died on that day are remembered as heroes."

The blond looked far more mature than his actual age as he gazed into the distance, "I've already decided I'm going to be the Hokage one day."

"Trying to steal my hat already?" Sarutobi said light-heartedly.

"The hat looks awesome, but I want to protect the smiles of the villagers," Naruto said, "As my parents did."

Listening to Minato's son's words made Sarutobi's stomach drop. For a second, he could've sworn he saw the figure of Minato standing beside Naruto, "Then I'll be waiting, Naruto."

"Believe it!" The Uzumaki declared confidently.

The Hokage laughed and ruffled the boy's hair, "I didn't come here just to talk to you. In fact, I came here to help you on your path to becoming a Hokage?"

"Really?"

"Yes. I will be giving you an apartment to live in so that you are closer to the Academy. I will personally pay for the apartment's rent, so you can live in there by yourself. I will also give you a monthly allowance so that you can buy things you need to succeed at the Academy and as a shinobi."

Naruto's face glowed as he heard the Hokage's words, "Thank you, ojichan!"

"Additionally, I will be placing an experienced chunin as your official tutor until you graduate. He will teach you everything he can to prepare you for your shinobi career."

Sarutobi lifted two fingers in the air and a figure materialized next to him. Naruto stepped back from the young shinobi's sudden appearance and looked at his new tutor.

The chunin's face was familiar. In fact, he looked similar to Sasuke and Sasuke's father, as he had the same eyes and hair as the two Uchihas. His attire was entirely black, with the exception of his vest, which was grey. The young man's eyes bore into him and the blond found himself unnerved by the man's stare.

Suddenly, it was clear why the person in front of him looked so familiar.

"This chunin will be your tutor from now on," Sarutobi happily stated, "His name is Uchiha Itachi."

* * *

"And the Jinchuriki?"

"Harmless... The boy can barely control his natural chakra. But he is a clean slate and can easily be shaped to suit our needs."

"Are you sure this plan will work, Fugaku?"

"Trust me. Itachi has revealed to me that he will be the Jinchuriki's tutor. All we need to do is wait and allow Itachi to carry out our wishes."

"But your eldest son is a potential traitor, is he not?"

"He is loyal to the village more than he is to our clan, but if this plan means averting a civil war, I am sure he will go through with it."

"Then let us wait and see until we decide our next course of action. If this is successful, we will directly have the Hokage's ears. However, the other elders are growing restless and we may have less time than expected..."

* * *

_AN: I wrote this due to a fic re__quest made by someone on Reddit. The official prompt was, "What if Naruto wasn't mistreated and treated as a hero like Minato requested?"_

_As you can tell, the beginning will be a bit slow. However, things will start to pick up soon. There will be changes to the Naruto world, so consider this an AU. What seems like a "small" change, will greatly affect Naruto's outlook in life, his friendships, and even the village itself. _

_As for the usual rundown:_

_1) Pairings aren't official. I'm open to ideas, but I was thinking of having the pairing with Naruto to be really exotic and rare (like Kurotsuchi or Shikzuka) (I apologize, but I do not write slash). However, romance will be a side plot and will not even be mentioned until Naruto is grown up in this story. And like always. I do not do harems. _

_2) Will the Uchiha massacre still happen? Yes? No? Maybe? We'll see. I won't spoil anything early on and I am coming up with several different possibilities right now. Maybe the massacre happens like the original canon. Maybe Itachi won't defect. Or maybe an internal Uchiha Civil War will happen. Who knows?_

_3) Is Naruto going to be OP? No, at least not initially. I don't write MCs that are immediately OP fics (and I don't plan to any time soon). Naruto will grow faster in this world, as he isn't always craving for attention early on, he's actually focusing on studying more seriously, and he has friends to help him along. He also has a goal (to become the Hokage). In canon, he wanted to become Hokage to have the villagers acknowledge him. In this story? He wants to actually protect the village and as he says in the story, "protect their smiles."_

_4) Why is Sarutobi moving so differently than Canon? Snowball effect. Sarutobi has made a bold and risky move to protect Naruto and declare him a hero, so he decides to continue on and help him grow into becoming a great shinobi. After all, the Third Hokage isn't going to be content with "well, I did this one thing for him so I'm completely forgiven for everything." Additionally, he's much more regretful of his mistakes in this story and is doing his best to improve Naruto's life. _

_5) How different is Naruto's personality going to be? He's going to be outgoing still, and loud at times. But he's also going to show flashes of his father when studying or learning something. No, he's not a genius in this story. His intelligence is the same. However, he's going to be a bit more serious about his studies and training early on, which will result in massive changes throughout the world. He's still aiming to be Hokage (for different reasons) and he won't be cocky/take things for granted (Because he understands he's a hero for something he doesn't remember and wants to forge his own path). He does also seem mature because he's taking things more seriously from an early age. He'll still act outgoing and happy, but he'll also have more "serious" moments._

_6) For plot convenience, Naruto has been placed in the same class as the other main characters of the original series. _

_7) Team assignments? Up in the air. I usually despise going the traditional route and try to spice it up, so we'll see how that goes._

_8) Will I reuse the same plot points and beat the poor horse to death? No. I'll be writing out my own scenarios and missions. There may be correlations between original canon and this story, but I will attempt to be as original as much as possible._

_9) What time is it according to the main series? This is about a year before the Uchiha Massacre happened in canon. _

_10) Will Naruto and Sasuke remain friends? That remains to be seen. Maybe having Itachi as Naruto's private tutor will enrage Sasuke and create a rift in between them. Maybe they cooperate and work together. It's for you to keep reading and find out :)_

_11) Any bashing? Nope. None. Sasuke does sound a bit whiney in this chapter, but he's only seven years old. I'm not looking to bash characters in order to make a story "good." I'm going to try and make this story "good" based on its merits alone._

_And as always, leave a review down below if you have any questions, comments, or criticisms. I apologize that my writing isn't that good. So if you think you have an idea or a suggestion that may improve this story, please review!_

_A big shoutout to u/LittenInAScarf for giving me this idea on Reddit!_

_Best regards,_

_Okmangeez_


	2. Chapter 2

Uchiha Itachi never saw himself as a good role model for aspiring shinobi students like his brother.

He understood his brother's obsession with working hard to surpass him. Sasuke sought validation from their parents and desired acknowledgment from the others for his abilities, not for being "Itachi's little brother.". However, he believed his brother's attempts at exceeding him were foolhardy and misguided. Unlike what his naive brother believed, Itachi's hands were hardly clean and his mind was filled with regrets over the path he took in order to reach his current position.

There were plenty of paths to greatness open for Itachi when he started his career as a shinobi. Because he wanted to achieve "greatness" as soon as possible, he chose the easiest route. The route was simply following whatever his father told him to do and blindly following the path set for him by his parents. It was a choice he regretted making, as nothing but misfortune and death plagued his life ever since he made chose that path. Even his closest friend Uchiha Shisui was taken away from him, as Itachi's father tasked him with a duty that was far beyond the prodigy Uchiha's capabilities. That immense duty was to spy on the Hokage as a member of Anbu and to gain the Hokage's trust to bridge the increasing rift between the Uchiha clan and Konoha. Despite his best efforts, Itachi was unable to make substantial progress and his best friend committed suicide in front of his own eyes in hopes of preventing the Uchiha clan from carrying out a coup.

Since then, Itachi took it upon himself to carry on his friend's hopes and dreams. But even a year after Shisui's death, the situation was still the same. His clan was on the verge of revolt and only his father's heavy handiness was preventing the clan from an outright uprising. Despite having reservations about his father, Itachi recognized that his father and a few other elders were the only ones preventing the Uchiha clan from throwing Konoha into a violent civil war. And even now, the Uchiha head was buckling under immense pressure from the more outspoken members of the clan. Many members of the Uchiha clan were becoming increasingly dissatisfied by the clan's isolation from the rest of the village, the rapid drop in finances due to the clan's isolation, and the clan's nosedive in prestige ever since the Kyuubi's attack on Konoha. The situation was made worse due to Shisui's untimely death and the Council's rejection of a proposal that would allow the Uchiha to move into the central parts of the village. Sooner or later, his father was going to yield and when that happened, any chance of a diplomatic resolution was going to vanish.

At most, Itachi had a year to avert the crisis. Most likely, it was going to be far sooner than later. From Itachi's point of view, his situation looked extremely bleak and hopeless.

It was during his time of despair that the Hokage appointed him as the tutor of one Uzumaki Naruto, temporarily removing him from Anbu operations until the boy's graduation. The Hokage chose him over the others because he desired to see Itachi lead a genin squad one day and believed that training Naruto would help him adjust to a more "normal" shinobi life.

He didn't take the "demotion" as an insult. If anything, it was a fresh breath of air for Itachi, as he wanted to keep his minds off the looming disaster that was creeping towards his village. The Uchiha wanted to fulfill his best friend's dying wishes but knew that time was running out. For the moment, Itachi desired to enjoy the last peaceful days of his life before he had to do something drastic.

However, his mentorship of the boy was not a simple assignment for him to relax. It was another mission, another political power struggle between the Uchiha clan and the Leaf government.

After Itachi received his assignment from the Hokage, he immediately reported it to his father. While he was loyal to Konoha, he knew his current role was that of a double agent in order to find a way to solve the current crisis peacefully. Neither side fully trusted him, but he was respected enough to maintain a foot in each door.

When his father heard about his new task, he seemed extremely pleased and ordered him to earn the Uzumaki's trust and maintain a direct relationship with the Hokage through the blond. Itachi's father knew that his son desired a peaceful resolution, so he attempted to manipulate the situation in his favor. While he himself wanted to amend the relationship with the rest of Konoha peacefully, Fugaku was not against revolting in order to restore the former glory, wealth, and prestige of his clan.

Itachi saw through his father's plans immediately, but dutifully accepted the Uchiha head's commands. It was his last, desperate gamble at peace.

"Hey, Itachi-san! Are we going to start yet?"

The chunin blinked as the voice abruptly ended his train of thought. Itachi turned to see that his official "student" was waiting alongside his brother. It was an ordinary, sunny day in Konoha and the three of them were in Training Ground Seven for training. The Academy had finished classes for the day and the two boys had just arrived at the training ground for their lesson with Itachi.

While the Hokage only assigned Naruto to him, it seemed as though the blond had dragged Itachi's younger brother to the training. The small, raven-haired boy looked angrier at Itachi than Naruto, as Itachi often turned his brother away when he asked to train together. When Sasuke saw the teenage Uchiha stare at him, the boy gave him an annoyed glance before turning his head the other way.

"Ah," The older Uchiha blinked, "My bad, let us begin."

Then he went silent once again, glancing between his two "students" silently.

Teaching someone was much more difficult than Itachi had ever imagined. It wasn't because he hated the idea of training Naruto and his younger brother. In reality, it was because he never had _experience_ teaching. Not only that, he was unable to explain jutsu and exercises step by step because they all came to him _naturally_. It was incredibly difficult for him to give the two of them precise instructions when he learned even the most difficult jutsu within minutes.

Sasuke looked at his brother awkwardly and crossed his arms, "If you only want to train Naruto, then I'll go train by myself. I don't need you to train me, I can get better on my own!"

Before he could run off, Naruto grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and pulled him back towards them, "You have to be patient, Sasuke. Maybe he has some awesome lesson plan for us and it's so awesome, he's taking a long time to think about it! Besides, do you want to miss out on training with your brother?"

The younger Uchiha grumbled under his breath but sat down on the ground expectantly. Itachi watched the exchange with an amused expression on his face. The two of them were the exact opposites of what he and Shisui were like when they were younger.

Shaking the thought out of his head before it depressed him further, Itachi cleared his throat nervously, "What have you learned at the Academy so far?"

"A bit of the Academy taijutsu, the Leaf Concentration exercise, and... um... a lot of textbook stuff!" Naruto replied cheerfully, with Sasuke nodding in agreement.

It wasn't much to go off of, but he had his orders. He was to train Naruto to the best of his abilities, gain the boy's trust, and gain the Hokage's personal trust by training the boy well. Since Sasuke had a close relationship with the boy, Itachi saw no reason to detach him from the training lessons and recognized an opportunity to help his brother and get the blond to respect him early on.

Itachi slowly parted his feet and entered a battle stance in front of them, "Go."

Both Naruto and Sasuke looked extremely confused as they stared at their teacher. Realizing that they didn't understand his command, Itachi motioned for them to attack him. They finally understood after several gestures and entered their respective fighting stances before charging in to fight their mentor.

The chunin easily caught Naruto's punch and pushed him sideways. While the blond lost his footing and fell onto the ground, Sasuke attacked him aggressively with a common Uchiha taijutsu combo. Itachi saw through it immediately and weaved between his brother's attacks. When he saw his brother overstep in order to throw a punch, Itachi tripped him and his younger brother tumbled onto the ground in a heap.

"I'm not done yet!" Naruto cried from behind as he aimed an accurate kick at Itachi's behind.

Without looking, Itachi parried the Uzumaki's kick with his left arm and lightly punched the boy in the stomach. The teenage Uchiha loomed over the two boys on the ground and smiled, "Lesson one: don't be so obvious when attacking."

The boys got up and tried once again, only to be defeated one by one. As they stubbornly stood back up, Itachi used the Body Flicker Technique to teleport beside them, "Lesson two: form a basic plan before attacking."

It seemed as though his words had some effect on his students, as they formulated a plan together and attacked in unison. Additionally, their movements and attacks were a bit more randomized, but Itachi still defeated them handily, "Lesson three: if you can't beat an enemy, run."

Suddenly, the boys took off running, looking battered and bruised from their relative short lesson with the chunin. Itachi sighed and chased after them. In his mind, he made a mental note to ask the Hokage for advice on how to train his students more effectively. It seemed like he still had a long way to go to complete his tasks.

* * *

Uchiha Sasuke's mind was filled with conflicting emotions and thoughts as he slowly ate his lunch at the Academy.

The young Uchiha knew he got angry a bit too easily for even the smallest provocations but found it difficult to control his temper. Especially since he believed that he was constantly wronged and neglected.

When he learned that his best friend was going to be personally tutored by his own brother, Sasuke was infuriated at his brother and his best friend. His brother always promised to train him one day, but he never followed through with his promise. Yet his friend, who didn't even know Itachi, was given the chance to learn from his older brother thanks to the Hokage. The raven-haired boy felt jealous of Naruto because the blond was acknowledged by the entire village and was receiving special treatment from the _Hokage_ himself.

However, his jealousy and inferiority complex faded away when Naruto asked Sasuke to train with him with a bright smile. The Uzumaki believed that it was unfair he was receiving special attention from Sasuke's own brother while Sasuke was neglected, so he willingly invited his friend to train with him. It was then Sasuke realized that his friend wasn't begging or asking for attention, the attention was given to him and he accepted it humbly. Even when he was given special treatment, Naruto didn't neglect his friends or act like he was better than them. The fact that Naruto asked him to train together with Itachi was proof of that.

Slowly, he realized that he overreacted too often and needed to take time to think about things before passing judgment. While his friend was treated specially, Sasuke realized that Naruto was very unique and different. He was a hard worker, but it was obvious that the blond needed to work twice as hard compared to everyone else in order to keep up with the Academy curriculum. The Uchiha also saw this when he and Naruto were training with his father, as Naruto struggled to even complete the first step of the Leaf Concentration Exercise while Sasuke eventually got the hang of it after some practice. Maybe the Hokage saw that Naruto was working hard and decided to give him a push to help him forward.

Sasuke also recognized that his anger towards his older brother was unwarranted. Sure, the fact that Itachi was officially Naruto's "mentor" was a bitter pill to swallow, but it was the Hokage that assigned his older brother to the job. And when Naruto brought Sasuke to train alongside him, Itachi didn't object and instead accepted Sasuke as one of his pupils. Maybe Itachi _was_ really busy and found an excuse to train Sasuke while training Naruto.

Naruto was right, the world seemed a lot better when he wasn't so angry about everything.

The Uchiha turned to his friend, who was eating and reading at the same time. It was an impressive sight, as the blond shoveled a whole onigiri in his mouth while he read a book about chakra control. The blond looked up at Sasuke as if he was able to sense his friend's gaze and grinned when their eyes met.

Sasuke grinned back. Naruto's smile was infectious, and his words were even more so.

Feeling calm for the first time in days, the raven-haired boy quietly enjoyed his lunch and watched his friend interact with Shikamaru and Chouji from a distance.

* * *

"Hey Teuchi-san, can I get another bowl of miso ramen?" Naruto shouted eagerly, hoisting his ramen bowl in the air like a trophy. Three empty ramen bowls were neatly stacked in front of him, but the Uzumaki was still not satisfied.

Teuchi, the owner of Ramen Ichiraku, gave the boy a thumbs up and threw a bundle of noodles into hot water, "One miso ramen for my favorite customer, coming right up!"

Ramen Ichiraku was one of Naruto's favorite place in all of Konoha, besides the training grounds and the Academy. It was a place where his favorite food was cheap and a place where he could meet new people. He tried to come to the ramen shop more often but the blond promised his teacher that he would diversify his food choices and not use up all his allowance on ramen.

Still, he came by Ramen Ichiraku at least three times a week and never left the place disappointed.

Sasuke and Chouji were sitting beside him, and they were also enjoying the delicious ramen the restaurant had to offer. Chouji was already on his sixth bowl, while Sasuke was taking his time to eat to enjoy his shoyu ramen slowly.

While he waited for his ramen to arrive, Naruto turned to Chouji and gaped as the boy topped off his sixth bowl with a small burp, "Man, this place is great! I still love eating barbecue more, but I can eat tons of delicious food here and still have money left over!"

It had been nearly a full month since Naruto started his training with Itachi. The three of them were eating lunch at the ramen shop because they didn't have any classes for the day. Naruto and Sasuke did get up early in the morning to train with Itachi, but the chunin gave them the rest of the day off so they could rest. Since Naruto was always hungry after practice, the two of them decided to go to Ramen Ichiraku to eat. On the way, they met up with Chouji, who was also looking for a place to eat lunch and invited him to join them on their trip to Ramen Ichiraku.

"Finally! Someone that can match me when I'm eating ramen!" Naruto said excitedly, "Sasuke never eats more than one bowl and he takes _forever_ to eat it."

The Uchiha in question scowled as he drank some of the ramen soup with a spoon, "I'm trying to enjoy the ramen and eat slowly so I don't get a stomachache later. Not everyone can eat as much as you can."

His remark wasn't an exaggeration, as only Chouji could really match the blond's appetite.

Naruto pouted as Ayame, the only other worker in the shop besides Teuchi, placed a fresh bowl of miso ramen in front of him. The girl laughed at Naruto's expression, "Thankfully, not everyone eats like Naruto, or we would run out of ingredients before dinner hours!"

Everyone laughed at Ayame's comment and Naruto's face turned a shadow of red as he ate his ramen quietly. After several minutes, the three finished up their meal and parted ways to return to their respective residences.

On the way back to his apartment, Naruto saw half a dozen girls surrounding a pink-haired girl in one of the alleys nearby. The blond recalled that all the girls that were surrounding the lone girl were his classmates at the Academy. Intrigued by their actions, Naruto stealthily hid behind the corner and listened in on their conversation.

"Face it, Forehead Girl. We know you're trying to act smart to get Sasuke-kun's attention."

The Uzumaki groaned and face planted as he realized that these girls were _especially _obsessed with Sasuke. He didn't exactly know _why_, but a lot of the girls at the Academy all swooned and tripped over their feet when they saw Sasuke nearby. Naruto chalked it up to be a girl's thing that was unable to understand. He leaned in a bit closer to listen to their conversation more carefully.

"I'm not!" A high pitched voice shrieked, "And Sasuke-kun isn't _yours_, Ino. He would never date you anyways."

The blonde named Ino frowned and shook her head angrily, "He isn't _yours_ either, Forehead Girl. Stop trying to impress him so much during class by raising your hand so much. You're annoying him and us."

And with that, the group of girls left the pink-haired girl named Sakura alone. When the other girls disappeared, he saw Sakura sinking slowly to the floor and crying into her hands.

Naruto frowned at the sight. He didn't understand half the things the girls were saying, but he knew that their words were enough to make Sakura cry. Instantly, he decided that he didn't like the other girls for making someone else cry and decided to help the pink-haired girl smile. He approached the girl cautiously and tapped her shoulders gently. When the girl looked up, Naruto gave her a gentle smile and a reassuring pat on the shoulder, "Are you ok?"

"Go away," The girl replied miserably.

"But you're crying."

"Why do you care?"

To him, the answer was obvious.

"Because I want to see people smiling, not crying."

The girl looked at him as if he was an oddball and stopped crying, "You're Naruto, aren't you?"

"Yep! And your name is Sakura, right?"

Sakura nodded her head hesitantly. She was no longer crying, but her face was still filled with sadness. Naruto stood up and held out his hand for the girl to take, "Do you want to go eat some ramen together? I think it'll help make you feel better."

From where he was standing, Naruto could see the girl's sapphire eyes were rapidly blinking as if she was processing what he had just said. He repeated it once again, just in case she didn't hear him, "Do you want to go eat ramen together? I'll pay for your ramen and you can talk about what made you cry with me."

For the first time since he started talking to her, Sakura smiled. She gently took his hand and brought herself back onto her feet, "Yes."

Naruto thought that her smile was brighter than the sun and decided he _liked_ making people smile, "Then let's go!"

* * *

"Naruto! Are you paying attention?"

The Uzumaki blinked and saw that his mentor was hovering over him, a look of displeasure evident on his face. Naruto sheepishly rubbed the back of his head and smiled, "Sorry, I was just thinking about what I was doing yesterday."

Itachi looked both amused and irritated at the same time, but nodded his head and continued his lesson.

Unlike his usual, focused self, Naruto was thinking about something other than becoming Hokage while he was being trained by Itachi. His mind was recalling the talk he had with Sakura yesterday. The girl was bright and fun to talk to, and he enjoyed making her smile. He didn't _like_ her as a girl, but Naruto liked her as a friend. And he liked her _a lot_. She was funny, smart, and sane when she wasn't around Sasuke. He was getting ramen with her after practice, and he was already looking forward to talking to her.

"Naruto!"

Naruto shook his head and apologized to Itachi. The chunin looked much more irritated than before and Sasuke shook his head mockingly. The blond rolled his eyes and focused on the training.

"Now, for the past month, I have been making you guys do nothing but running and spars against me," Itachi said. He paced nervously in front of the two boys, "But today, we're going to work on something different. I'm going to make you do your usual physical exercises, then help you create your own taijutsu form. Afterward, we're going to work on your chakra control and maybe start on some ninjutsu as well."

Sasuke and Naruto stared at Itachi as if he was an imposter. For the past month or so, Itachi seemed like he didn't know what he was doing and didn't train them specifically. Now, it seemed as though Itachi had suddenly transformed into a real teacher and gained some newfound confidence as well.

"Alright, since both of you are well conditioned, I'm going to have you run more than usual," Itachi stated with a small smile, "After all, you'll still be sparring me at the end, so you'll need to train to become faster."

The two students groaned at his comment. The more things changed, the more things stayed the same.

* * *

"Again."

Naruto gave Sasuke a confident smile before cautiously moving forward to unleash his taijutsu attack.

Nearly ten months had passed since Sasuke and Naruto started training under Itachi, and the improvements they made were visibly evident. It took a single difficult month for Itachi to "act like a normal teacher" and actually train his students properly, but he learned quickly like he always did. Although he would never admit it out loud, learning how to teach was the one and only thing that required him to constantly practice and seek advice from others in order to master. However, when he did manage to master the "art" of teaching, Itachi put it to good use.

Sasuke and Naruto were now eight years old and were skilled enough to be genin. The two of them were very adept in taijutsu, though they both had very different styles. The younger Uchiha preferred to use his clan's traditional taijutsu stances and combos, which typically consisted of rapid strikes and leg sweeps. Meanwhile, Naruto's taijutsu style was a bit less refined, but still greatly effective. He combined the two basic Academy forms, the offensive and defensive forms, and added in a mix of the Uchiha forms as well. As a result, the Uzumaki's taijutsu style consisted of roundhouse kicks, quick jabs, and a powerful guard. They were both incredibly fast for their age, as Itachi worked them to the bone so they improved faster. While Sasuke was faster in terms of overall speed, Naruto had much more stamina and lasted longer in fights.

The two Academy students were fairly even in terms of skill and there was rarely an outright victor when they sparred against each other.

Sasuke saw Naruto's jab coming from a mile away, as he was used to the blond's fighting style. He stepped sideways to dodge his opponent's jab and countered with a fast uppercut to the jaw.

Naruto barely managed to get his guard up to block the incoming uppercut, but he defended the attack in time and responded with a powerful roundhouse kick with his right leg. The kick managed to strike Sasuke's hip, but the Uchiha smirked and grabbed his friend's leg with his left hand. While Naruto was immobilized, Sasuke swiped at his only free leg and knocked Naruto onto the ground.

The Uzumaki groaned from the sudden counterattack but leaped backward skillfully to dodge an elbow that was aimed at his forehead, "That wasn't very nice, Sasuke."

"A shinobi must always use all the tools he has available to his advantage," Sasuke said with a smile, echoing one of the rules found in the Shinobi Code.

Cracking his neck, the blond grinned and rushed forward. He was familiar with Sasuke's fighting style and tactics and knew that Sasuke was also aware of his own styles and tactics. Therefore, Naruto decided to mix up his style a bit to throw off his opponent.

Instead of engaging with his usual roundhouse kick, Naruto feinted a jab towards Sasuke's face and then swept the Uchiha's legs cleanly. The raven-haired boy managed to regain his footing rapidly but was unable to block a roundhouse kick that was directed towards his stomach.

Sasuke fell onto the ground with the wind knocked out of him. He slowly rose to his feet, but found his friend's fist waiting right in front of him, "It's my win."

Naruto grinned ear to ear as he helped the Uchiha up. Sasuke took the loss gracefully and slapped Naruto on the back in a congratulatory manner, "I'm still ahead 51-48."

"Nu-uh! The score is 51-49 now!"

"Whatever, I'm still ahead."

"Boys, you can argue about the scores later. The last thing I want is for the two of you to argue about the scores until sundown _again_," Itachi said dryly, "Both of you are getting better, but there's still a lot more improvements that can be made. However, since we've been practicing for a few hours now, I'll let the two of you go home if you can manage to pull off the jutsu I assigned to you last week."

Using chakra papers, Itachi was able to discover that Naruto had an affinity for Wind while his brother had an affinity for Fire. Thankfully, those were the two affinities that he had managed to master during his time as a shinobi and he had no trouble teaching them jutsu for their respective elements.

Sasuke stepped up first and puffed his chest proudly, "Otousan said that my fireball is great! Just wait till you see, ni-san!"

The boy made the six hand seals necessary for the jutsu and created an "o" shape with his lips, "_Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu_ (Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu)!"

A continuous stream of fire poured out of Sasuke's mouth and formed a giant fireball in front of him. After a few seconds, the stream of fire stopped and a giant crater was all that remained of the Fireball Jutsu.

The younger Uchiha turned to his older brother boastfully, "How was it?"

"Well... It certainly was a Great Fireball," Itachi deadpanned.

Sasuke rolled his eyes but smiled when his brother poked his forehead, "You did well, Sasuke. You have to keep on working hard, alright?"

"Ok!"

"Well then Naruto, let's see yours."

Naruto stepped beside the giant crater and proceeded to form the proper hand seals for his jutsu, "_Futon: Rasen-jo Kaze Tama _(Wind Release: Spiralling Wind Ball)!"

The blond used his breath to create a solid ball of wind in his hand and threw it towards a nearby tree. The tree rocked violently on impact and fell onto the ground with a gaping hole in its trunk. Itachi nodded in approval and patted Naruto's shoulders, "Good work. Your hand seals are a bit slow, but it's something that we can work on later on. Excellent work. Naruto, stay behind for a moment. I need to talk to you. Sasuke, you are dismissed."

Sasuke looked at his brother questioningly, but Itachi waved him off and the younger Uchiha left the training ground. Naruto walked up to his mentor and tilted his head, "Did you need something, sensei?"

The two of them had a fairly close teacher-student bond and Itachi was secretly grateful for it. The blond was a positive ball of energy and his positive influence spilled over to Itachi at times. It was something he desperately needed after Shisui's death, "I just want you to do know that you're doing a great job, Naruto. You're always trying your hardest even if start off slower than Sasuke."

"Because I'm going to be the Hokage one day!" Naruto announced proudly.

The Uchiha chuckled for a few moments before his expression turned serious again. Naruto looked at his mentor's expression and frowned, "Sensei, do _you_ have anything you want to be in the future?"

Itachi blinked at the seemingly random question. He thought about it for several seconds before discovering that he had no real answer. He wanted to stop a potential civil war and protect his family, but what _did_ he want to do after that? When he was younger, he aimed to be the Hokage like Naruto, but now...

The chunin had no answer.

"Why do you ask, Naruto?"

"Because you're an awesome ninja and awesome ninjas should have awesome goals, right? Whenever you turn serious, you have the same atm..."

"Atmosphere?"

"Right!" Naruto nodded his head, "Atmosphere! You have the same atmosphere as Sasuke when he's mad!"

"How so?" Itachi asked, suddenly interested in what the blond had to say.

"You get all gloomy and look as if someone is comparing you to someone else. And you always have a sad expression on your face too!"

The eldest son of Fugaku didn't think his facial expressions were _that_ obvious, but somehow, a mere eight-year-old managed to decipher his feelings perfectly, "Perhaps you're right, Naruto."

Naruto patted his shoulders reassuringly, "It's like what I always tell Sasuke; you don't need anyone else to control your life. You should set a _big _goal and then try your best to achieve it. You're a great ninja, so I'm sure you can do anything!"

_If only you knew,_ Itachi thought ruefully. The Uchiha gave his student a small smile and patted his head, "You're a good kid, Naruto. I'll take your advice. Now go home and rest."

After Naruto left, Itachi remained behind for a few more minutes before journeying to the Hokage's office. He arrived through the main entrance and was escorted into the office by the Hokage's secretary, a genin named Hiroyoshi who was used to Itachi's visits.

Inside the Hokage's office, Hiruzen was looking through some paperwork and only looked up after Itachi was standing directly in front of his desk, "Ah, Itachi. How was training today?"

"It went smoothly like usual, Hokage-sama."

"That's certainly good to hear," The Third Hokage replied. He took a minute to review more paperwork before turning his attention back to the Uchiha, "Do you have anything to say about today's activities, or do you have something else in mind as well?"

Unsurprisingly, the Hokage was able to read Itachi like a book, even though Itachi rarely displayed his emotions in front of his superiors, "Sasuke managed to master the Great Fireball Jutsu while Naruto managed to use the Spiralling Wind Ball without any problems."

Hiruzen chuckled as he smoked his pipe leisurely, "I remember that you told me about Naruto's first attempt at making a Spiralling Wind Ball. The poor boy made it too large and nearly destroyed the training ground he was in. To think that it was only two weeks ago! Their growth is certainly remarkable. "

The chunin had to agree with the Hokage's assessment. Both of his students were extremely talented. While Sasuke picked up on new jutsu or exercises much faster, Naruto always managed to catch up quickly through sheer willpower and stamina. Itachi suspected that Naruto trained tirelessly by himself when he was alone, as he showed significant improvement day by day.

But that wasn't the reason why he was here.

"Hokage-sama," Itachi interrupted the man while he was recalling other memories of Naruto, "I would like to speak to you about the new proposal sent by the Uchiha clan."

Itachi met with the Hokage on a daily basis to report on the progress of Naruto's and Sasuke's training. During the past several months, he managed to grow closer to the leader of Konoha like his father desired. However, to Itachi's dismay, the Hokage was not the only issue the Uchiha faced in their quest to restore their clan's prestige. Leaders from other clans objected to the Uchiha clan's desire to resettle in their old territories. When the Uchiha clan was forced to relocate to the edges of the village, other clans moved into the fill in the vacancy the Uchiha clan left behind. As a result, these clans were unwilling to yield their new positions of power and wealth back to the Uchiha clan, at least not willingly. Negotiations were still in progress, but they were advancing at a slow pace.

At the rate the negotiations were going, the Uchiha clan would be in financial ruins before the necessary changes took place.

The Third Hokage's expression turned serious as he pulled out a large pile of documents from one of his desk drawers. He flipped through a few pages before pulling out the appropriate document for the exchange.

"A gradual resettlement of former Uchiha lands, in exchange for allowing the clans that are currently on those lands to maintain their commercial holdings..." Hiruzen muttered as he read the summary of the proposal. "Does the Uchiha clan approve of ceding the commercial holdings willingly?"

Many _weren't_ happy with the current proposal, but it was the best chance of a peaceful resolution to the conflict and was supported by the Uchiha head. Itachi looked at the document in the Hokage's hand and shook his head, "No, but it may be the only offer that will convince the clans to willingly give back the former Uchiha lands."

"I see. You have my word that I will personally support this proposal in the next meeting, Itachi. Until then, I ask that you manage to convince your clan to be patient."

"Thank you, Hokage-sama." Itachi bowed and exited the building.

Unfortunately for himself and the village, bad news awaited Itachi when he returned home.

His father personally greeted him at the gates of the Uchiha district and whispered, "I have been overruled, Itachi."

Itachi's eyes widened and his shoulders went slack, "That means..."

Fugaku confirmed his eldest son's fears, "War."

* * *

Itachi walked noiselessly to the edge of the ravine that overlooked the Naka River. The moon was shining brightly in the night sky and the river reflected the moon brightly. In the chunin's hands were a single bouquet of dark pink roses. He placed them gently on a certain spot near the edges of the ravine and sat down on the ground.

"It's been a while, Shisui," Itachi whispered. He sighed and shook his head, "I'm sorry, but I've failed you."

A single tear fell down Itachi's eyes as he looked at the pink roses. The bouquet was on the very exact spot that Shisui killed himself from. After losing his right eye and giving his left eye to Itachi, Shisui leaped from the ravine and disappeared into the rivers down below. He was never seen again and was presumed dead.

Itachi pounded his fist into the earth and looked towards the moon, "If you were still alive, Shisui, you would've been able to stop this."

He rarely expressed his emotions so publicly, but the frustration and helplessness he was feeling took over his body. Itachi barely managed to restrain himself before he started destroying the terrain. His eyes flashed red and formed the Mangekyo Sharingan as he stared at the flowers he had brought for his fallen friend.

"_Amaterasu_ (Heavenly Illumination)."

Black flames flickered onto the roses and burned the bouquet instantly. Itachi watched as the burnt remnants of the roses fell into the river down below, along with the black fires from the Amaterasu. He used his Mangekyo Sharingan every time he visited this place, as a constant reminder of his best friend.

A friend that he failed to save.

"Half of the clan is still loyal to the village," Itachi continued, "The proposal I talked about last time was approved, so not all of the clan members want to revolt. But the other half of the clan is still dissatisfied and is preparing for war."

More tears dropped from his eyes as he watched the final remnants of the bouquet fall into the water down below. "I have been offered a chance to stop this war, to kill the entire clan and prevent thousands of deaths... But should I take it, Shisui?"

The ravine was silent with the exception of Itachi's sobs. "What would you have done?"

He received no answers, and he fell into despair once more.

* * *

_AN: And... we end on a depressing note._

_I won't spoil anything, as the next chapter will be crucial for Itachi's, Naruto's, and Sasuke's development. However, I will say that it may not be as depressing as you expect._

_What will be the fate of the Uchiha Clan? How will Tobi fit into all this? How will Sasuke react to the looming war? And how has Naruto changed the world already?_

_Stay tuned for more :)_

_Now onto the glorious reviews!  
_

_1) No pairings official, like I stated before. Sakura will be more of a "sister" type of friend to Naruto. Will she be paired with Sasuke? I do not know. _

_2) No, not everyone in the village approves of Naruto. You will see familiar villains appearing soon enough, and they will rock Naruto's naive view of Konoha. However, his goal will remain constant and will adjust accordingly to the situations he faces. _

_3) I don't plan on making Sasuke an edgy teenager with daddy/brother issues. However, you will see a pretty noticeable shift in his personality in the next chapter_

_4) Not all bonds will be the same. For one, Hinata won't have a huge crush on Naruto like in canon (as the events that took place for that to happen didn't happen in this world). That doesn't mean that it's impossible for her to develop a crush later on, but it's unlikely as of now._

_5) Some canon points might be used, but I will try to be as original as possible. As mentioned in the previous chapter, I don't like beating dead horses :)_

_6) Team Seven might be kept together. I will let the story flow on its own and not force anything._

_7) Itachi is a very complex character... And I portrayed him so. Too many fics portray him as this stoic, perfect human being that's more machine than man. He's perfectly capable of displaying his emotions (his emotionless persona with Akatsuki was fake). And as of current, he's still a teenager with adult problems that he is unable to handle. Thus the ending scene of this chapter. _

_Thank you all for your support so far, and until next time!_


	3. Chapter 3

"The militarists in the Uchiha clan plan to rebel within a week, Hokage-sama."

Itachi was unable to make eye contact with the leader of Konoha. Even though building a close relationship with the Hokage was a ploy to make him side with the Uchiha Clan, the chunin had a deep, personal respect for the God of Shinobi. As such, the recent revelation regarding the Uchiha Clan made Itachi feel ashamed to be in the Hokage's presence. While the man was unaware of the mission assigned to Itachi by Fugaku, he _was_ aware of the Uchiha Clan's rebellious attitude and the growing unrest within the clan. As such, Itachi had acted as a liaison for the Hokage to the Uchiha Clan and had served as the communication line between the two parties. Up until that moment, Itachi had made the Hokage believe that he had convinced the Uchiha Clan from outright rebelling against Konoha.

But now, with the truth revealed, it seemed as though Itachi had kept the Hokage in the dark about the Uchiha Clan's recent actions. The Uchiha was unable to read the expression on the elder shinobi's face, but he knew that the Third Hokage was not pleased.

"You stated just _yesterday_ that the crisis has been averted, Chunin Itachi."

The Uchiha winced at the tone of the Hokage's voice and stared at the floor, "I was told of this information after my meeting with you, Hokage-sama. However, not all of the clan is willing to rebel against Konoha. The militarists are planning to subdue any Uchihas that are unwilling to go with the coup and are moving quickly to do so. Over the next several days, there will be infighting within the Uchiha district as the two factions fight for supremacy."

"Then perhaps it's best to crush the dissenters before the fighting spreads to the rest of the village," The Third Hokage stated firmly.

"I do not believe that would be a wise move, Hokage-sama," Itachi bowed his head further towards the ground as the Hokage turned to him, "Even those that are against the coup are bitter towards the village due to our clan's current situation. If the village publicly supports the peace faction, then it may cause members of the peace faction to defect to the militarist faction."

The Hokage's face darkened as he smoked his pipe. He breathed out a cloud of smoke and rubbed his temple, "Perhaps you are right."

"It does not matter if there are defections. We must destroy any traitors immediately before any foreign nations catch wind of this."

A new voice cut into the conversation and surprised the two shinobi in the Hokage's office. The source of the voice was an average-sized man with bandages covering the right side of his face. The man glanced towards Itachi spitefully before he focused his attention on the Hokage, "If the Uchiha clan is fighting itself, then it is the perfect chance to strike and stop the coup before it begins."

Hiruzen glared at the bandaged man as he walked up to the Hokage's desk. "Did I say you can enter my office, Danzo?"

"We are facing a grave threat to our village, and you are more worried about me entering your office without your permission?" Danzo scoffed. "I warned you about this _months_ ago, Hiruzen. Yet you refused to take preemptive action when I warned you, and now the Uchiha clan is attempting to throw Konoha into a civil war!"

Itachi was well aware of who Danzo was. The man was a former teammate of the Third Hokage and an influential figure in Konoha but was rarely seen out in public.

And he was also his best friend's murderer.

The Uchiha's blood boiled from the man's tone, as Itachi could discern that Danzo was willing to use brute force to put down the rebellious Uchihas. He knew the man was a hypocrite and wanted to put down the man who not only killed his Shisui but desired to put down the Uchiha Clan without remorse. However, Itachi couldn't attack the man in front of the Hokage. No matter how much he desired to avenge his friend, the Uchiha knew that attacking an elder of the village in front of the Hokage would be met with severe repercussions. As such, Itachi held himself back... for now.

"If we are to prevent the coup and ensure peace within Konoha, then it is better to discreetly support the peace faction rather than intervening outright."

Danzo scowled, "And if they lose? What then? There is no guarantee that this "peace" faction will emerge victoriously. We must carry out extreme measures to pacify this threat, once and for all."

"I can still prevent it, Hokage-sama," Itachi kneeled in front of the two elders, "I will do everything in my power to prevent the coup from happening."

"You are just delaying our countermeasures so you can buy precious time for the traitors to win, _boy_. Do you honestly expect us to believe that you, the _eldest son_ of the Uchiha Clan's Head, has no part in this coup?" Danzo growled.

"My father is a member of the peace faction and wishes to prevent the coup from occurring just as much as you do, Danzo-sama."

"Yet, he failed to prevent the situation from escalating," Danzo crossed his arms and frowned, "You are an Uchiha yourself, are you not? Then tell me, why should we trust your words when your _own clan_ is attempting to overthrow the rightful government of Konoha?"

The man's words were filled with venom as he glared hatefully at the lone Uchiha in the room. Itachi maintained his composure and directly made eye contact with Danzo, "Because I am loyal to Konoha over my own clan. I may be an Uchiha, but I am also a shinobi of the Leaf."

Instead of making another aggressive remark, the bandaged man looked silent and appraised the chunin with his lone eye. The man's face darkened as he shook his head, "Even if you are truly loyal, would you be willing to go against your own clan, your own _family_ to do what is necessary for our village's security?"

Itachi looked at the man's icy glare and swallowed nervously. His mind projected images of his father, his mother, and most importantly, his younger brother, "I...I do not know."

The Hokage finally interjected in between them and waved off the Uchiha, "You are dismissed, Chunin Itachi. Please update me on any new information regarding the Uchiha Clan that comes into light. I will call you back into my office at a later time to continue this discussion."

Itachi bowed and exited the office, but not before he heard the word "purge" coming out from the bandaged man's mouth.

* * *

Unaware of his older brother's dilemma, Sasuke was training by himself at home. He was in his house's backyard and was practicing a jutsu that his brother taught him a few days prior.

"_Katon: Hosenka no Jutsu (Fire Release: Phoneix Sage Fire Jutsu)_!"

The Academy student formed a medium-sized fireball with his mouth and attempted to split the fireball into several, smaller fireballs. He managed to separate the fireball into two and control them. However, before they struck their targets, the fireballs faded in the air and left only scorch marks on the ground.

"Why is this so hard?" Sasuke complained as he kicked some dust off the ground, "I can do the _Gokakyu no Jutsu (Great Fireball Jutsu) _so easily!"

"You need to have patience, Sasuke. It's harder because you have to control multiple fireballs instead of creating one giant one."

Sasuke turned to see his brother watching him with a small smile on his face. Itachi's smile didn't reach his eyes but Sasuke was too distracted by the appearance of his brother to notice, "Nii san!"

The younger Uchiha sprinted towards his brother and pulled him into a tight hug. Itachi hesitated after his brother collided into him, but quickly placed his arms firmly around his brother's torso, "How was your day at the Academy?'

"It was great! I aced an exam and studied with Naruto and his girlfriend." Sasuke piped up excitedly.

Itachi tousled his brother's hair and smiled, "I don't think Naruto sees Sakura as his girlfriend, otouto (younger brother)."

"Well, but they're always studying and hanging out together!" Sasuke pouted, "And sometimes, Naruto doesn't invite me to their hangout!"

Usually, Itachi would have laughed at his brother's remarks and teased him, but the older Uchiha was not in the mood for teasing, "Perhaps you're right."

"Anyways, I'm pretty close to finishing up the new jutsu you taught me!"

"I look forward to seeing it during our next training session," Itachi replied nonchalantly.

Itachi pulled his brother towards him and motioned for him to lie down on the ground next to him. The small raven-haired boy looked puzzled, but followed his brother's lead and stared at the place his brother was staring. The sun was setting in the distance and the two brothers watch silently as the sky grew darker.

"Sasuke."

"Mm?"

"What if I said that we should run away together, away from the village?"

Sasuke shot up with a start and gaped at his older brother, "What do you mean, nii san?"

The chunin remained on the ground and turned his head towards him, "I mean... What if we ran off together and traveled by ourselves for a while? We can travel around the Elemental Nations and see new things. I can even train you while we're traveling."

"That does sound nice," Sasuke admitted. He glanced at his brother before he turned his gaze towards the central parts of Konoha, "But I think I want to stay here, nii san. You already train me here and I don't want to leave my friends behind."

Itachi knew exactly which friend the boy had in mind as he spoke, "What if he comes with us too?"

"Naruto?"

"Who else?"

Sasuke looked at his brother thoughtfully and shook his head, "I don't think he would come with us. He has other friends in Konoha and he wants to be the Hokage so..."

The older Uchiha sighed and closed his eyes, "But what if he comes with us?"

"Is something wrong, nii san? You've been asking some weird questions." Sasuke sat next to his brother and looked at him worriedly.

Itachi flicked Sasuke's forehead without opening his eyes, "Of course not, otouto. Everything is fine. Everything is going to be just fine."

* * *

Naruto looked up from his bowl of rice and frowned at his best friend, "Your brother was acting weirdly yesterday?"

The two of them were eating their lunches along with the rest of the class in their Academy classroom. For once, Naruto did not have a book in front of him and was focused on eating the bento he had purchased from a local restaurant in the morning. Due to his large appetite, he had spent over two hundred ryos (approximately $20 US dollars) to buy five bentos. Meanwhile, Sasuke was eating some fruits and an energy bar as he chatted with his friend.

"Yeah, he was asking if I wanted to leave the village and travel with him around the continent," Sasuke replied, biting into an apple his mother had packed him for lunch.

"And what did you say?" Naruto asked nervously.

Sasuke rolled his eyes at his friend's worriedness, "Of course I said I'm staying. I want to travel outside of Konoha one day, but I want to be a Konoha shinobi first. Besides, if I become a shinobi, I'll be able to take missions and travel to a lot of places anyways."

The blond looked relieved and grinned at the Uchiha, "Wouldn't it be awesome if we got placed in the same team? Imagine if you, me, and Sakura are all on one team! We would do so many cool things together and beat up the bad guys!"

"That would be awesome," Sasuke exclaimed as he finished off his apple.

The two boys were chatting about jutsu and shinobi gear when a pink-haired girl walked up to them. The girl smiled brightly at Naruto and turned slightly pink when she saw Sasuke, "Hi."

Seeing Sakura around Naruto and Sasuke was not unusual, as the girl helped Naruto with his schoolwork. By default, that also meant she was around Sasuke constantly. Thanks to Naruto's intervention and his protective attitude of the girl, the jealous girls in the class stayed away from Sakura. She would still receive a few hateful glares from some of her female classmates, but they never went any further than that.

"Oi, Sakura! Sasuke thinks that a blue vest is cooler than a green one! Obviously he's wrong, but which color do you think is better?" Naruto asked. Sasuke shot him an annoyed glare and waited for Sakura to answer.

Sakura _almost_ rolled her eyes at the two boys' antics, but she was used to their friendly bickerings. Ever since she started hanging out with them, Sakura acted as the tiebreaker to their arguments. Despite her own crush on Sasuke, the girl never showed favoritism to the Uchiha when making her judgment. Sasuke was her crush, but Naruto was also her close friend and confidant.

"Hmmm..." Sakura looked at the two individually before making her choice, "Personally, I think green is the better color. A green vest would match my eyes."

"See!" Naruto pointed at his friend while shouting loudly, making a few students turn their heads toward him.

Sasuke scowled at his friend's reaction and shook his head, but laughed when he saw his friend receive a scolding from Iruka. While the two were distracted, Sakura slowly slid into the open seat next to Sasuke and placed her lunch on the desk in front of her. The raven-haired boy noticed her presence a few seconds later and gave her a faint smile when he made eye contact with her. The pink-haired girl felt her cheeks getting hotter and hoped her crush didn't notice.

Things settled down afterward and the three of them ate their lunch in relative silence. Towards the end of the lunch period, Naruto finished up his last bento and stacked the empty boxes neatly on his desk. After making a sizeable tower from the remains of his lunch, Naruto patted his stomach and looked at Sakura, "Hey, Sakura. Do you want to train with us the next time we train with Sasuke's brother?"

Naruto asked her that question nearly every time he saw her, but she politely refused him each time. It wasn't because she disliked the blond, in fact, she did want to train with the two. However, she knew that they were much stronger than her and was afraid of appearing weak in front of her crush. Added to the fact that her more "aggressive" side flared out whenever she trained intensely served as another reason to avoid training with Naruto and Sasuke.

She was about to reject his offer but before she did, Sakura noticed that Sasuke was staring at her. His hands were folded in front of him and he was looking at her intensely. The Uchiha's face was unreadable as he looked at her, but the girl felt her heart flutter from his stare. Sakura deduced that the Uchiha was silently urging her to accept the blond's offer.

"Sure!"

From the corner of her eyes, Sakura saw Sasuke placing his face into his hands and slumping onto the desk.

* * *

"Then you would support this coup in order to restore the prestige and wealth of our clan!"

Itachi winced as he listened to the conversation between the elders and his father silently. He was sitting in the very corner of the room, remaining inconspicuous and unmoving to avoid attention from the other Uchihas in the room. The elders originally objected to his presence, but his father remained unwavering in the face of their protests and Itachi was allowed to attend the meeting. Fugaku knew that Itachi's relationship with the Hokage was critical in preventing an intervention and treated him like a personal envoy from the Hokage himself.

Coming from his father, that was very high praise. His father believed that he was important enough to attend a crucial meeting that would decide the future of the clan. However, to Itachi, his father's high opinion of him felt hollow. The Uchiha head saw him as an asset, a tool that he could wield to expand his influence. Itachi knew that his father was constantly under pressure in order to bring the militarists to heel, but hated that his father seemed to disregard the fact that Itachi was his son.

Even so, placed his personal feelings to the side for the time being. The situation was growing worse, even more so since the majority of the elders had overruled his father's pleas for peace. While the current Uchiha Head still maintained his leadership of the clan, his position was growing weaker by the day while the militarists grew stronger.

Fugaku, who was wearing a traditional blue kimono, was sitting at the head of the meeting table and frowned, "Do you realize the level of destruction and grief you will bring on our clan the moment you go through with this coup?"

"_Our_ clan is already suffering! More and more Uchihas are joining our cause because they see that _you_ are not fixing any of our problems," The leader of the militarist faction within the Uchiha Clan was an elder named Honda. Despite his old age, he retired from the shinobi forces only a year before and was greatly respected by members of the Uchiha Clan. He was a war hawk that was dissatisfied by the Uchiha Clan's fall from grace and the Hokage's seemingly cold attitude to their pleas.

The air thickened as the Uchiha Head bore down the belligerent elder, "Your "solution" will result in the death of dozens, if not hundreds, of Uchihas and perhaps the destruction of our entire clan."

"It is better that we die on our feet than to live on our knees," Honda spat, "All you offered were empty promises that were constantly broken and placed us in a weaker position than before! You promised that we would be able to reclaim our rightful ancestral lands after meeting with the Hokage, yet he turned his back towards our clan and sold the land to those squabbling civilian merchants!"

Itachi watched the elder carefully and noted that many members in the room seemed to agree with the man. Even some of the members of the peace faction looked amendable to the man's accusations.

"My son," Fugaku motioned to the silent chunin sitting in the corner, "Has managed to negotiate with the Hokage _himself_ and received his approval to start resettling in our former territories."

"You allowed a mere _boy_ to negotiate with that tyrant and look what happened," Honda snorted loudly and waved off the chunin dismissively, "Yes, allow us to _slowly_ resettle back into _our_ land, in exchange for sacrificing _our_ potential sources of revenue. And there is no doubt that the Hokage will stall any attempts to speed up the process, as he always has!"

Murmurs broke out between the gathered leaders of the Uchiha Clan while Fugaku attempted to reseize the initiative. Itachi tried to find a way to interject himself into the meeting but realized that he was hopelessly out of his league. He was considered a "prodigy" by most of the clan, but compared to the people in the room, he was powerless. Not only did many of the elders distrust him for his association with the Hokage, but he was also very young and inexperienced in politics. No matter what he had to say, the elders would disregard it as "foolish" or "naive."

As he was thinking by himself, his father was being constantly bombarded with criticism and accusations by Honda and his supporters. Unfortunately, it seemed as though the resolute Uchiha Head was finally showing cracks in his facade.

Things were not looking good.

* * *

"You must be Sakura," Itachi said as he greeted his students, "It's nice to finally meet the person that Naruto talks about all the time."

Naruto turned red from embarrassment and lashed out playfully at his mentor, "I don't talk about her _all _the time, Itachi-san!"

The three Academy students and chunin were in Training Ground Seven for their training session. It had been four days since Itachi had trained the two boys, as he had been busy with "clan duties." The last several days had drained him considerably, both mentally and physically. However, the chunin decided to not cancel the scheduled training session, as he enjoyed teaching and viewed the training session as a break. While his students were a handful, Itachi knew that they were less stressful to deal with than the Hokage and certain members of the Uchiha Clan.

Besides, if the coup escalated, then Itachi wanted the kids to have a happy memory to remember him by.

"Nice to meet you, Itachi-san!" Sakura jovially stated as she bowed.

"Since you're new to our training sessions, I'll go easy on you."

"No need! I'll do the same training as Naruto and Sasuke," The pink-haired girl declared confidently.

Itachi tilted his head sideways, "Are you sure?"

"Absolutely!"

The chunin shook his head, "Very well, you can join them on their warmup run."

Sakura turned to the two boys with a puzzled look, "Warmup run?"

"Yep! We run two times around the village! It's a great way to get ready for Itachi-san's training!" Naruto replied as he jogged in place.

The girl looked petrified but saw that Sasuke and Itachi were both staring at her expectingly. She gulped and gave the two a weak smile, "I'm ready for it."

"Then let's go!" Naruto dragged Sakura away from the training ground with Sasuke in tow. Itachi chuckled as he watched them leave and placed his hands in his pocket. While he waited for his students to return, he created a new training regimen that accounted for Sakura. Since he now had three students to deal with, at least for the day, he was able to train them in basic squad tactics and formations. In addition to this, Itachi planned to test Sakura's abilities and make note of her weaknesses. Even if she chose not to train with Naruto and Sasuke after today, at least she would have some insight on the proficiency of her current skills.

It took two hours for the kids to return to the training ground. Naruto looked just as energetic as ever, while Sasuke looked winded and tired. Meanwhile, Sakura looked like she was on the brink of collapse. She laid down on the ground and wheezed heavily, while sweat glistened from her face and neck. The kunoichi in training barely managed to lift her head to look at her two friends as she rested, "_That_ was a warmup?"

Naruto nodded his head and stretched near her, "It wasn't so bad, was it?"

Itachi swore he heard curses under the girl's breath as she brought herself to a standing position, "You have an insane amount of stamina, Naruto."

"I do?" The blond blinked.

"Yes, you have more stamina than me," Sasuke admitted as he gulped down some water from a bottle that his brother had brought for him.

"Maybe I should run one more lap then, so I'm not the only one that's not exhausted."

The older Uchiha stopped the Uzumaki before he ran out of the training ground, "We'll be trying some new today, so it's better for you to not waste your energy."

Sasuke suddenly looked alert and refreshed upon hearing his brother's remark, "Are we learning a new jutsu?"

"No," Itachi shook his head, "But you will be learning about squad tactics and formations. Now that we have Sakura here, I can help you learn the basics of teamwork."

Surprisingly, there were no objections from the three. Itachi took this as a good sign and started his explanation, "In Konoha, most genin will begin their shinobi career in a team of four: three genin and one jonin. I do not know if you will all be grouped together, but the information I am about to tell you will be useful for the future. If for some reason you are all placed in different teams, each of you will be able to pass on this knowledge to your teammates and lead the squad in its initial phases. Additionally, knowing squad tactics and formation will expedite your promotion to chunin, as a chunin is required to have the main Konoha formations memorized and have good tact."

"Alright, let's begin with the spearhead formation. I will be the "spearhead," while you three act as the "shaft." Using this formation, I will start the main attack on the enemy by myself, and you three will follow up with attacks of your own. Basically, I will be "softening up" the enemy while you will act as the "clean up..."

* * *

Hiruzen didn't want to resort to extreme measures, but the situation was already out of his control. Perhaps the threats of a coup would have fizzled out if he acted sooner and played a more active role in the negotiations. Or perhaps the situation would have improved if he didn't place all his faith in one Uchiha Itachi. However, now was not the time to reminisce on the past.

Now was the time to resolve the crisis, before it even began.

And unfortunately, the Third Hokage was beginning to see the logic behind Danzo's words.

He had tried desperately to force the two factions within the Uchiha Clan to make amends, but unfortunately, his efforts were fruitless. The militarists were unwilling to concede any ground and the peace faction had shrunk to a mere dozen or so Uchihas. As such, Danzo's idea appealed to him more and more. While the Third Hokage desired minimal violence, he knew that Danzo's way was the only way to solve the current crisis and prevent the coup. Especially since all his efforts had failed up to this moment. He was still sickened at the possibility of slaughtering the entire clan, even children, but he was aware that time and options were running out.

"As I said before, _Hokage-sama_," Danzo said as he pointed at a map of the Uchiha District that was on the Hokage's desk, "I will place several of my Root units in the outskirts of the Uchiha district, while you supplement them with your own Anbu forces. They will work together to eliminate the Uchiha Clan completely, sparing only the infants so they may be... re-educated."

"They will _not_ be indoctrinated into Root, Danzo," Hiruzen replied with steel in his voice. At this point in time, the Third Hokage considered most of the Uchihas as potential threats to the village's security. However, unknowing infants were a different story, "That was the agreement."

Danzo waved his hand dismissively, "Of course, I am a man of my words. But I will be participating in the attack."

The Third Hokage's eyes narrowed as he gave his counterpart a piercing glare, "Why?"

"Because _someone _needs to deal with the more "elite" members of the Uchiha Clan. Specifically, the current rebel leader and the Uchiha head."

Hiruzen gripped the edges of the table as he looked at his former teammate. The head of Root wasn't wrong in his assumption. The Uchiha Clan was a formidable clan with many active shinobi within its ranks. While Danzo wasn't as powerful as the Hokage himself, he was a powerful shinobi in his own rights. Even so, the Third Hokage felt uneased at Danzo's involvement in the operation. It wasn't a secret that Danzo desired to exploit the Uchiha's dojutsu for himself. If he allowed the elder to take part in the operation, then it was highly likely that some of the bodies would be snatched by the man to be used for illegal experiments. And the man's eagerness to wipe out the Uchiha Clan was another point of concern as well.

As if he sensed the Hokage's dilemma, Danzo spoke up to reassure his superior, "Since you will be coordinating the operation, someone else must take your place on the front lines. Since I am an elder of this village and the head of Root, I will personally take charge of the attack."

"I will come to a decision before the operation begins," The Third Hokage's maintained his glare towards the elder. He was still uncertain about allowing Danzo to participate in the operation, but he was the only one capable to take out the strongest Uchihas other than himself.

Danzo bowed his head, "Of course, _Hokage-sama_."

The two of them continued to discuss the operation until they heard a knock on the door. Hiruzen looked around carefully before granting the person permission to enter. When the door opened, Itachi walked into the office and bowed to the two elders, though he was visibly restrained when bowing towards Danzo, "You wanted to see me, Hokage-sama?"

"I have come to a final decision, Chunin Itachi," Hiruzen announced, "The Uchiha Clan will be _eliminated_, with certain exceptions."

Itachi's face remained impassive as he looked at the Hokage, "Even those that are opposed to the coup, like my father?"

"It is unfortunate, but there is no doubt that even those that are loyal to the village will be outraged at our intervention. Therefore, we must start the clan anew," Danzo smiled coldly. The man's smile sent shivers down Itachi's back and made him lower his gaze, "Perhaps this _Uchiha_ can be of use to us in this regard."

"Danzo!" Hiruzen shouted.

The head of Root calmly looked at the Hokage before turning his head to look at Itachi, "Even if he claims he is loyal to the village, his efforts had been useless in our struggle to put down this coup. It's entirely possible that he _isn't_ as loyal as he seems. Therefore, we should give him a chance to... redeem himself."

The Third Hokage looked displeased but remained silent as Danzo continued, "You have reservations about my involvement in this whole affair, Hiruzen, so I have a proposal. Let this Uchiha prove his worth and his loyalty to the village by wiping out the leadership of the Uchiha Clan. If he is the one carrying out the attack, then the leadership will be caught off guard and he will most likely succeed. Afterward, the rest of our forces will sweep the Uchiha District and quell this rebellion for good. Perhaps if he succeeds in wiping out the leadership, he can cleanse the Uchiha Clan alone and make it seem like we were uninvolved in this whole affair. I will even allow his brother to be spared..."

"No."

Itachi's answer was short and clipped. He looked up at the two elderly shinobi that were determining the future of his clan with a frown, "I'm afraid I can not carry out such an order, Hokage-sama. However, you have my word that I will not leak this information to the rest of my clan."

Perhaps in another world, Itachi would have accepted the deal in order to ensure the village's security and his brother's safety. However, when Danzo made the offer, two thoughts ran through the Uchiha's mind.

The first was a memory of him and his younger brother lying peacefully on the ground while watching the sunset.

The second was his conversation with Naruto.

_"It's like what I always tell Sasuke; you don't need anyone else to control your life. You should set a big goal and then try your best to achieve it. You're a great ninja, so I'm sure you can do anything!"_

He was sick and tired of being used as a puppet for both sides. His loyalty to Konoha was still strong, but the idea of carrying out a massacre against his own clansmen, against his _own father_, mortified him. If Itachi killed hundreds of shinobi mindlessly due to the orders of the Hokage and an elder, then how could he ever face his students or even worse, his own brother? Even if it was a necessary evil, it was an order that he could not carry out.

The Uchiha desired nothing more than living out his days peacefully while training his students and spending time with his younger brother. But now that he knew about this plan, he was going to do everything he could to save himself and his brother, and escape to live peacefully in the countryside. He still believed in Konoha and her ideals, but if they were unwanted in the village, then he had no choice but to flee along with his brother.

Danzo snarled as he approached the chunin cautiously, "Did you really think we will believe your feeble attempt to escape this meeting unscathed?"

"Stop, Danzo," Hiruzen stepped in between the two of them, "Chunin Itachi, do you _swear _that you will not leak any information regarding this meeting to the members of your clan?"

"I do."

"Then I have a different mission for you."

Itachi looked up at the Hokage with his eyebrows raised, but the man looked away before they made eye contact. Danzo looked furious but the Third Hokage's glare silenced him immediately, "You are to gather any children in the Uchiha Clan and evacuate them out of the Uchiha District before this operation begins. You are to ensure that none of them approach the district during the fighting and that they remain _unaware_ of the Leaf's involvement in the operation. If you succeed, they will be spared from the onslaught."

"That is a recipe for disaster! The _children _are old enough to question the sudden destruction of their clan. Undoubtedly, this _Uchiha_ will one day gather the survivors and strike against the village..."

"My decision is final, Danzo! I will not let children be executed because of your paranoia." Hiruzen stated firmly, slamming his fist onto the desk with force.

The elder stormed out of the room after hearing the Hokage's decision and slammed the door behind him. The leader of Konoha's face fell downcast as he turned to the chunin and sighed, "You are dismissed, Itachi."

Itachi looked stunned from the exchange and looked at the Hokage hesitantly, "I'm sorry I failed you, Hokage-sama."

"No," Hiruzen looked out the window to see the cloudy, dim sky, "I'm sorry that I failed _you_."

* * *

It was nearly time for the operation to begin, and thankfully, Itachi had succeeded in evacuating the children of the Uchihas in the peace faction. The group only numbered around ten in total, but it was the best he could considering his circumstances. The militarist faction was hostile to him and refused his pleas to take their children away from the fighting. Even so, saving ten lives was better than saving none. He was still coming terms with the fact that his parents would be dead by the end of the day, but he knew that his parents were well aware that they would most likely be killed due to their allegiance to the Uchiha Clan. They remained unaware of the operation authorized by the Hokage, but they knew that an attempted coup would be met with deadly force.

"Where are we going, Itachi?" Uchiha Izumi asked. The girl looked blissfully happy as Itachi dragged her away from the Uchiha District, but Itachi's expression was far more serious.

"To one of my student's place. I wanted you and the others to meet the students that I've been training," Itachi replied. It was a lame excuse, but it was enough to get the kids away from the fighting.

The group arrived at an apartment complex near the Shinobi Academy. The complex was brightly lit and was home to dozens of civilians and shinobi alike. Itachi herded the ten children into an elevator and stopped them in front of Apartment #321: Naruto's apartment.

When Itachi asked the blond if a "few" children could come to his place for the night, he happily agreed to the request. Even though he would never admit it out loud, the Uchiha felt blessed to have the boy as his pupil. His positivity influenced him in ways that the Uzumaki could never understand and provided him a goal _he_ actually wanted to achieve.

To revive and lead the survivors of the Uchiha Clan to a better future.

He was uncertain about how he was going to achieve this goal, but he knew that he was the only one in a position to fulfill it. He also felt obligated to protect the smiling children around him. Their parents were going to perish due to his own failures, but he was going to ensure they grew up safely and happily.

Itachi hoped that his deceased friend would agree with his new goal.

The Uchiha knocked on Naruto's apartment door and waited until the door swung open. Instead of a bright, small blond greeting him, it was a pink-haired girl that greeted him instead, "Hello, Itachi-san!"

"Is Naruto inside, Sakura?"

"No. He left a few minutes ago in order to look for you! He and Sasuke were getting impatient so they decided to run to the Uchiha District by themselves," Sakura replied, "Is there a problem?"

Itachi shot off in a flash and ran to the nearest exit, "Sakura, take care of the kids while I get Naruto and Sasuke. Don't let them out of your sights, and make sure that they stay safe in that apartment!"

He didn't hear her reply as he sped off towards the Uchiha District. He only hoped that his brother and the Uzumaki were safe.

* * *

"Sasuke, maybe we should head back," Naruto said to his friend as they ran towards the Uchiha District.

"We're almost there anyway. Might as well get nii chan and bring him back to your apartment."

The two of them arrived at the gates of the Uchiha District. Surprisingly, the gates were wide open without any guards in sight.

Naruto glanced around nervously and whispered to his friend, "Something's wrong, Sasuke. We should leave."

Instead of answering, Sasuke ran into the district. Naruto reluctantly followed after his friend, and immediately regretted his decision.

Bodies were strewn everyone in the district. Some were scattered on the roads while others were hanging from nearby buildings. Many of the bodies were scarred in gruesome ways and all of them were unmoving. From the corner of his eyes, the blond saw a bandaged man lying in a heap next to a group of Anbu members. Naruto barely held in the content of his stomach as he walked ominously behind Sasuke.

Suddenly, the young Uchiha broke out into a sprint towards his home. Naruto tried to call out to him and stop him, but the raven-haired boy ignored his friend's cries and ran faster than ever before.

The Uchiha Head's house was undamaged, but when Sasuke stepped inside, he came face to face with the corpse of his mother. A bloody kunai was embedded into her chest. He gripped her hand tightly and was unable to find a pulse.

"Okaasan..." Sasuke muttered as he gripped the lifeless hand tighter. Tears spilled out of the Uchiha's eyes as he looked the horrified expression permanently etched into his mother's face.

Naruto finally managed to catch up with Sasuke and arrived at the house to see his friend mourning over his mother's dead body. He gently placed his hands on the grieving boy's shoulders, "I'm sorry, Sasuke."

When Sasuke turned to look at Naruto, the blond saw that his eyes were blood red, "I'm going to kill them."

Just then, a loud explosion rocked the house and large plumes of smoke billowed from the house's backyard. Sasuke quickly jumped to his feet and ran towards the source of the sound with Naruto. The duo witnessed a tall man with an orange spiral mask fighting Sasuke's father. Fugaku looked heavily injured and was missing his right arm, but remained on his feet with determination in his eyes. He caught sight of the two boys and cried out to them, "_Sasuke, run!_"

The masked man disappeared into the air and teleported behind the two boys to hold them down, "Well well... A jinchuriki and an Uchiha. What an interesting pair."

Sasuke lashed out against the unknown assailant, but his punch was intercept easily, "I have heard about you... Uchiha Sasuke. I know that you are always in your brother's shadows and seek to exceed his legacy. How about you come with me? I will teach you the true ways of an Uchiha and give you powers beyond your imagination."

"Never!" Sasuke's Sharingan spun rapidly as he tried to cut the man with a kunai. The man blocked his attack and kicked him in the head, making him fall unconscious.

Naruto saw his friend tumble away and struggled under the man's grasp, only to have a similar fate to Sasuke. His attacker swatted away the feeble resistance that Naruto offered and tossed him into a nearby wall.

"Oh, well. I guess I will finish what I have started."

The man teleported behind the Uchiha Head and stabbed him in the back with a kunai. As Fugaku collapsed onto the ground, the masked man approached the two fallen Academy Students and spun his kunai rapidly, "Now who will I kill first?"

"Neither."

Itachi appeared in front of the two boys and placed his arms out protectively, "You're finished after I'm through with you, Danzo."

For a moment, the man remained unmoving, but he threw back his head and laughed, "You think I am _Danzo_? You ignorant fool, Danzo is _beneath_ me. If he heard my name, he would tremble with fear!"

Instead of rambling on, the masked man looked around and then shook his head, "Looks like my time is up. But mark my words, I will return one day and finish what I have started."

The masked man disappeared without a trace and Itachi immediately ran to his father. The chunin gently rested his father's head on the ground and tried to bandage his wounds. Fugaku looked extremely weak but gripped his eldest son's arm tightly, "Protect Sasuke..."

"I will."

Fugaku coughed up some blood and his grip loosened, but he continued to speak, "Av...Avenge us."

"No, _we_ will," Itachi fumbled with the bandages and cursed, "You're not going to die, otousan."

Right before he closed his eyes for the final time, the Uchiha Head muttered his final parting words, "I... am proud of you."

As his father's life force faded before his very eyes, Itachi wept silently. Just moments later, Anbu members sent by the Hokage arrived at the house and discovered the only three witnesses of the mysterious masked man.

* * *

The funeral for the Uchihas was a quiet and private event. The Uchiha Clan had sparsely maintained contact with individuals outside their own clan and as a result, only a few people showed up to honor the hundreds of Uchihas that were slaughtered during the "Uchiha Massacre."

Itachi led the group of eleven children that survived the massacre to the funeral and grieved alongside them. Naruto and Sakura were also at the funeral with them and comforted Sasuke, who looked oddly inexpressive throughout the whole ordeal.

After Itachi placed three incenses in each of his deceased parent's urns, the Third Hokage pulled him aside and spoke with him, "I'm sorry that this happened, Itachi."

"It wasn't your fault, Hokage-sama," Itachi responded. The Uchiha didn't hold the man accountable for the near destruction of the Uchiha Clan. If anything, the fact that the mysterious masked man massacred the clan relieved him. Shortly after the Uchiha Massacre, any evidence of the planned operation to wipe out the Uchiha Clan was destroyed. Unexpectedly, Danzo was also murdered during the Massacre, along with a group of his Root shinobi. It seemed as though the elder decided to take the matters into his own hands, only to be murdered by the masked assailant. As such, only Itachi and the Hokage knew the full extent of the plan and the true reason for the Uchiha Clan's demise. To the public, the Uchiha Clan was nearly destroyed due to internal strife and foreign involvement, though the extent of the foreign involvement was left intentionally vague. While his faith in the Hokage and Konoha was shaken, Itachi was still steadfastly loyal to the Leaf Village due to the Hokage's final efforts to protect younger Uchihas.

"I've heard that far too many times during my time as Hokage," Hiruzen remarked as he placed incenses in the urns as well, "I have heard it time and time again, even as I grew more experienced leading the village. Perhaps it is time for me to retire from my position."

"Retire?"

Hiruzen did not reply as he finished a silent prayer for the fallen and departed from the funeral.

Itachi's eyes glanced around the room and grimaced at the sight of the crying children. Almost all the surviving Uchihas, with the exception of his childhood friend Izumi, lost their parents due to the Massacre. He was now the oldest Uchiha alive, and the de facto head of the clan. As he watched the children mourn for their parents, he vowed to restore his clan and ensure that a tragedy of this scale never occurred again.

Just outside of his hearing range, Sasuke watched the incenses in his parent's urn burn. While his friends tried to comfort him, his thoughts were only focused on one thing.

To avenge his parents and destroy their murderer, no matter what his brother said.

* * *

"Be lucky that I chose to spare you three," The masked man stated coldly as he flicked his kunai towards the trio huddled near the end of the cave.

"What do you want with us?" The eldest one in the group, a woman wearing shinobi gear, asked.

The masked man gave the group a predatory grin under his mask, "Oh don't worry, Uchiha Himari. No harm will come to you and your sons if you _do whatever I say_."

* * *

_AN: So yeah... I got into a car accident. Not even a joke, I actually got into a car accident a week ago and I was recovering until now. _

_The next chapter will be a time skip towards the middle/end of Naruto's Academy Days. Action will start to pick up after that._

_I just want to let you guys know that updates might be slow, due to my current injuries suffered from the car accident (mainly my back and knee). I'll still be typing, but updates may be weekly/bi-weekly from now on. _

_Thanks for reading! And until next time._


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